Five Toronto Raptors storylines to follow throughout the NBA season

One of these years, Toronto Raptors fans will be able to live in the present. Wins and losses will seem more important than what lies ahead in the way-off distance. It has not been that way since Chris Bosh broke his face and split for Miami, back in 2010.

The three final playoff spots in the Eastern Conference seem open this year. Nonetheless, it feels unlikely that the Raptors’ results will feel crucial. There are too many decisions that have to be made in the near future that could have a notable impact on the team.

With that said, five storylines merit close attention as the Raptors prepare to kick off their 19th season.

Winning, Losing And The Vast Space In Between

All of the talk surrounds Andrew Wiggins, and rightfully so: Some experts think he is the best wing prospect to enter the NBA since Kevin Durant. The 2014 draft, however, is not Wiggins or bust. Players such as Kentucky’s Julius Randle, Australia’s Dante Exum, Oklahoma State’s Marcus Smart and Duke’s Jabari Parker all have top-pick talent. It is not clear whether or not Raptors GM Masai Ujiri agrees that this draft is that loaded. If he does, he cannot afford to waste much time assessing what Bryan Colangelo left him.

Last year, 10 wins were the difference between being the second-worst team in the league and the ninth-worst. This year, teams such as Philadelphia, Boston, Phoenix, Orlando and Charlotte are going to be dreadful, and many others could join them with a trade or two. Ujiri does not like to lose transactions — to give up more than he receives in return. But if he holds on to Rudy Gay or Kyle Lowry, both potentially free agents at season’s end, for too long, he will lose his shot at the top of that draft. So the question he must answer before mid-December or so: Is holding on to those players worth that risk?

In short, they produced at a very similar rate, and play very similar games. Both have reasons to believe they will be better from beyond the arc this year — Gay had laser-eye surgery, while DeRozan worked tirelessly on his shot — but neither is a very good playmaker. There is a lot of math that says the pair cannot excel together, although both players have said they help each other out. (Gay got better, incrementally, after he was traded to Toronto.)

Ujiri has a big decision to make on this front, since the pair will be owed nearly US$29-million if Gay opts into the final year of his contract next season. If they do not defy the numbers, that would represent colossal overspending.

Paying For The Point

Not many starting-calibre point guards got paid this summer. Brandon Jennings got US$24-million over three years in restricted free agency from Detroit. Atlanta matched Milwaukee’s offer of US$32-million over four years for Jeff Teague. And Jose Calderon, an unrestricted free agent, took US$3-million less than that from Dallas.

If Kyle Lowry repeats his pattern — post a few statistically dominant weeks, get injured, fail to see eye to eye with the coach — he might have trouble reaching the annual salary of those players. If he helps lead the Raptors to the playoffs, he could be looking at eight figures. The Raptors, without a natural successor to Lowry, might be the ones giving it to him.

“I think he’s at a high level,” Raptors coach Dwane Casey said last week. “I think Kyle is playing as well as expected. I think his conditioning is unbelievable right now, compared to last year. He’d be the first to tell you that. His leadership has been solid. He’s been upbeat, positive.”

Lowry will play with a splint on his left ring finger for the first five weeks of the season after suffering ligament damage in a pre-season game.

Assessing The Coach

At an event for season ticket holders during the pre-season, Ujiri acknowledged Casey was on the final year of his contract. “I want you guys to really support him,” Ujiri said.

Whether Ujiri will support him will be interesting to observe. It should be noted that Ujiri inherited a coach, George Karl, when he left Toronto for Denver, and kept him in charge for his entire tenure. In fact, Ujiri built the Nuggets’ roster around Karl’s run-and-gun preferences. Casey does not have the track record of Karl, though, and the Raptors regressed defensively last season in a major way. Nonetheless, Casey is being given an honest chance to prove he can excel in the top role.

The Sophomore Bump?

In their rookie seasons, Jonas Valanciunas met his reasonable expectations while Terrence Ross was wildly inconsistent.

There is less of a safety net in place for both this season. Valanciunas and Amir Johnson should both play more than 30 minutes per game up front, with the reserve options fleeting and flawed. Meanwhile, Ross is perhaps the Raptors’ most natural scorer — and maybe their only one — off of the bench.

With precious few alternatives on the roster, both players will have to prove to be decent fits with their larger roles. If not, the Raptors’ season could sink.